Electrical contact-joint.



' No. 856,321. PATENTED JUNE 11, 1907.

R. H. WAPPLER.

ELECTRICAL CONTACT JOINT. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 21,1906.

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REINHOLD n. WAPPLER, or NEW YORK, N. Y.

ELECTRICAL CONTACT-JOINT- NOI 856,321.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 1 1, 1907.

' Application filed June 21, 1906. SerialNo. 322,732.

, fil 'o al l whom, it nmybunccrn:

Be it known that I, REINnoLn H. WAY- PLER, alcitizen of the UnitedStates, and a resident of the city of New York, borough of Manhattan, in the county and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Electrical Contact-Joint, of which the following isIa full, clear, and exact diescriotion. a

My invention relates to electrical contact joints, my more-particular object being to produce a type of joint suitable for use in connection with miniature lamps employed in surgery,- dentistry, watch-making, and various other professions and avocations in which it is necessary to manipulate the lamp by" hand, or to secure it upon the operators head, as the case may be.

Among the objects sought to be accomplished by my invention are the following: 1.

o insure perfect electrical communication. through the joint, notwithstanding its mobility; 2. To enable the operator to readily adjust the pressure between the contact.

- lamp socket upon a spring band to members through which the current flows;

3. To limit the degree of displacement which may take place between contiguous contact portions movable relatively to each other; 4. To compensate for wear u on the fixed and movable contact joints w ere the same actually engage each other; 5. To produce a type of joint in which the contact members tend to remain clean, and in which the may readily be cleaned if accidentally so ed or coated with grease; and 6. To enable the joint to be readily transposed from one suport to another so as to enable the lamp to be .used for different urposes.

Reference is to be I iad to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specifi-' cation, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a side elevation showing my improved joint supporting a small electrical lamp socket upon a handle 'Fi 2 is a'plan View of the same; Fig. 3 is an enlarged horizontal sect-ion through the center of the ball and socket coimection shown in Fig. 1 and elsewhere; and Fig. 4 is a reduced plan view showing my improved joint as su porting a be mounted upon the operators head.

The lamp socket is shown at 5 and isprovided with a sleeve 6 integral therewith, and encircling this sleeve is an annular button 7 of insulating material, 'The sleeve 6 is threaded internally, and fitting intoit is a removable sleeve 8 threaded externally. A tube 9 of ebonite or other insulating material is mounted within the sleeve 8 and is provided at one of its ends with an annular flange 10. Ametallic stem' 11 extends longitudinaly through thetube 9. I

At 12 is shown the neck of 'an incandescent lamp. This neck is provided at 13 with threads which engage mating threads 14 bounding the inner surface of the socket 5.

This enables the neck 12. of the incandescent lamp to be screwed into position substantially in the usual manner. The neck 12 of metal constitutes the so-called outer contact of the lamp. The so-called inner contact is shown at 15, these parts being insulated from each'other by a sleeve 12 of hard rubber or other insulating material. A'nut 16 engages the stem 11'. This stem is provided with a thread '1 7 and passes axially through a ball 18 of insulating material. This ball is provided with an annular portion 19 intergal therewith and serving as an insulating gasket. Two hemispheres 20 of metal are fitted upon opposite sides of the ball 18. Screws 21 pass directly through the metallic hemispheres 20 and into the ball 18 of insulating material. These screws are provided with elongated cylindrical heads 22 which are sunken about half-way through the thickness of the hemispheres 20. The hemis heres 20 are thus in effect metallic shells insulated from each other and having a ball form. A pair of clamping plates 23,24 are 'fitted ,upon opposite sides of the co' posite sphere thus built upl and directly engage the hemispher-- ical she s 20. An annular sleeve 25 of insu lating material is fitted into the clamping plate 24. A- bolt 26 passes, through this sleeve 25 of insulating material and extends across to the clam ing late 23 passing directly therethrougli. I i externally and revolub'ly mounted upon it is iis bolt is threaded a threaded nut 27. By loosening or tightening the nut 27, or what is practically tl 1e same thing, by turning the bolt 26 relatively to the" nut 27, the clamping plates 23, 24 are drawn toward each other or allowed to move a art,

according to the directioril'iof rotation o the nut 27. i The pressure of e clamping plates 23, 24, u on the composite ball is therefore regulate at will. A base 28 of insulating material supports the clamping plates 23, 24 which are secured thereupon. The base'28 is provided with a projecting portion 29 which is adapted to enter a metallic sleeve 30, the latter being provided with a slot 31 in order to receive it and exert such a gentle ressure upon it as will hold it securely in p ace but m render it readily removable. The sleeve is fitted upon a handle 32, whereby the device may be manipulated at the will of the operator. Instead of being mounted upon this handle the base 28 may be similarlyfitted I 5 into a metallic sleeve 33 carried by a spring band 34 having a pressure plate 35 so as to be secured upon the operators head. withdrawing the portion 29 from the sleeve -30, or the sleeve 33, as the case may be, the 20 device may be shifted from one form of holder to another. A plug handle 36 is provided with plugs 37, 38 insulated from each other and connected with wires 39 whereby current is supplied to the pressure plates. The pres- 25 sure plates 23, 24 are rovided with eyes 29" through which the e ongated cylindrical llieads 22 of the screws 21 pass as'shown in My invention is used as follows:The o clamping plates 23, 24, being adjusted as above described exert pressure upon opposite sides of the composite balls, and thus hold the same with some little degree of rigidity in any desired angular-position per- 5 mitted by the screw heads 22 moving-within the eyes 29*. The pressure of the clamping plates upon the metallic hemispheres 20 insures continuous metallic contact between these parts. The portion 29 being tolorably 40 large as shown, it almost necessarily follows that some part of the surface bounded by the portion is in good metallic engagement with the adjacent hemisphere, even if the contact is not good at every point of the circle repreresented by the boundary of thee ye.

It will be noted that if the ball be turned upon a vertical axis, according to the view shown in Fig. 3, the lamp may be turned within wide limits, probably not less than 190 to 200 degrees. By being moved in a vertical plane, however, the range is limited by the elongated scrmv heads 22 reaching the boundaries oftho eyes '29. The elongated ,screw heads being sunken within the hemi spherical shells 20 they have good anchorage and cannot be easily broken or displaced. The insulation between the hemispherical shells 20, is necessarily good at all times and no displacement of any part can occasion short circuiting. By adjusting the ressure plates 23 relatively to each other, t e operator can render the angular movement of the ball relatively to the pressure plates as easy or as dillicult as he chooses. By drawing the pressure plates toward each other, be

' engage said pressure plates and serve as lim- -ical form mounted upon said ball an increases the perfection of the electrical contact, but diminishes the mobility of the movable parts.

The device permits of a wide range of adjustment, thus rendering it suitable for a considerable number of independent objects.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. In an electrical contact joint, the combination of a plurality of members flexibly connected together, and provided with electrical fittings, one of said members being provided with a boss, and a plurality of independent supports of different character each provided with a sleeve for engaging said boss for the purpose of rendering said supports interchangeable relatively to each other.

i 2. An electrical contact joint, comprising pressure plates, electrical connections thereor, a substantially spherical member mounted intermediate of said pressure plates, said member being provided upon opposite sides with contact surfaces insulated from each other, and electrical connections for said contact surfaces.

3. An electrical contact joint, comprising a pair of contact members, means for ad justing the same relatively toward each other, a substantially spherical member dispose'd intermediate of said contact members and provided with contact faces insulated from each other, and electrical connections for said contact faces.

4. The combination of a pair of pressure plates, means for sup )orting the same, a ball of insulating-material disposed intermediate of said pressure plates, hemispherical metallic shells mounted upon opposite sides .of said ball of insulating material, said shells being insulated from each other, and electrical connections for said hemispherical shells.

5. The combination of a ball-of insulating material, metallic contact members-of substantiallyhemispherical form mounted thereupon and insulated from each other, memi bers connected with said metallic contact members and projecting therefrom so as to r15 iting stops for said ball and said contact members, electrical connections for said contact members, and electrical connections for said pressure plates. 6. The combination of'a ball of insulating material, a metallic stem passing axially thercthrough and serving as an electrical conncction, a contact member of substantially hemispherical lorm mounted upon said ball and engaging said metallic stem, another r2 5 contact member of substantially hcinis )hcr disposed oppositely to said contact member first mentioned, an electrical connection for said second-mentioned contact member, pressure plates disposed upon opposite sides of seid all and engaging respectively said contact members, and electrical ccnnections for Salli icns for said contact members.

pressure plates. In. testimony whereof I ah: VG

I contact members, electrical cgc'mc' l 7. The combination of a revoluble memg name this s g. ecificatl n in eh one for ssnd pressure plates, and theatres emmew er 01"" refund form provided with Contact two subscribing "u members, pressure plates engaging said 001% tact members, means for adjusting said pres sure plates relatively to each other so as to 10 exert a greater or lesser pressure 11 pen said Witnesses JOHN 5131M, J12, TERESA-L Hem. 

